The 2025/26 ADMIRAL Bundesliga season starts this weekend with so much happening on and off the pitch over the summer break - with fresh faces, old acquaintances, new coaches and so many open questions. Who will claim the title? Who will avoid the drop? Who can be dangerous to us this season? If there is one thing we can say for sure after our Bundesliga opposition check - it is going to be exciting!

SK Sturm Graz

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The champions remain our biggest rivals as they look for a third successive crown. Sturm have kept the largest part of their squad together, even if the departure of defensive stalwart Gregory Wüthrich to Young Boys Bern has left a gap to fill. In Tim Oermann (on loan from Bayer Leverkusen), Filip Rozga (Cracovia) and Axel Kayombo (FC Basel), they have reinforced in certain positions. An injury to goalkeeper Daniil Khudyakov has left them looking for a new signing between the sticks.

Sturm have shown no signs of slowing down in pre-season, taking an impressive 2-1 win against German Bundesliga new boys Hamburg before taking a 4-0 cup win at Bischofshofen. Graz start their UEFA Champions League campaign in the middle of August in the play-off. They also get the new league season underway on Friday evening away at LASK.

SK Rapid Vienna

There has been plenty to keep the club from the capital busy under new coach Peter Stöger over the summer. The departure of Isak Jansson brought a rumoured €10m to the club's coffers. The signing of Ercan Kara also saw a familiar face return to the attack - with several young talents also acquired in Petter Nosa Dahl (Mechelen), Andrija Radulovic (Vojvodina) and Claudy Mbuyi (St. Pölten).

Rapid found Wacker Innsbruck tougher than expected in the cup but ended up claiming a narrow 1-0 away win. Things went better in UEFA Conference League qualification, where they took a 2-0 win in the first leg against Decic. The Green and Whites will give everything they can to get back in the Bundesliga's leading pack this season.

Wolfsberger AC

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WAC are going into the new season with bags of confidence after taking their first cup win. They have shown in their transfer market that they are in the mood to press on - signing Donis Avdijaj (Hartberg), Marco Sulzner (LASK) and Adama Drame (Zilina). Fabian Wohlmuth (Ried) and Rene Renner, who returns to Austria after a spell in Thailand, are also on the 'in' list.

Leaving the club are Adis Jasic (Al-Ain), Thomas Sabitzer (WSG Tirol), Ervin Omic, Sandro Altunashvili, Maximillian Ullmann (all end of contract) and Jonathan Scherzer (Ried). Didi Kühbauer's side seem ready for the new season, taking wins in pre-season against Besiktas and Istra, losing only against Braga. The reigning holders had no problem in the first round of the cup with a 3-1 win at St. Marienkirchen.

LASK

After losing in the Bundesliga's European play-off against Rapid, LASK have rung the changes over the summer. A new coach in Joao Sacramento will look for a fresh start. Several new players might help in that with Adetunji Adeshina (Novi Pazar), Art Makaj (Lokomotiva Zagreb), Kasper Jorgensen (Aalborg) and Lukas Kacavenda (Dinamo Zagreb, on loan).

Several key pillars from last season have left the club, however. Tobias Lawal is off to KRC Genk, while Robert Zulj and Filip Stojkovic are both heading to Thailand. Ivan Ljubic, Philipp Ziereis and Marco Sulzner have also left the club. Wins have been claimed in pre-season against Trencin (7-1) and Hajduk Split (2-1), along with defeats against Bröndby (0-1) and Union Berlin (0-2). A clear 4-0 win in the cup against Wiener Sport-Club raises hopes of a good start to the Bundesliga this Friday evening at home to Sturm Graz.

FK Austria Vienna

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It wasn't a quiet summer for Austria, either. Johannes Eggestein came from FC St. Pauli and is ready to add fresh impetus to their attack. Maurice Malone has been signed on a permanent deal following a loan, while Manprit Sarkaria is back in the Bundesliga after his adventure in China - while an unknown addition from South Korea, Kang-hee Lee, adds some excitement. There have been several out-of-contract departures with Andreas Gruber, Marvin Potzmann, Lucas Galvao and David Ewemade all leaving the club and making way for fresh faces in Stephan Helm's squad.

Results have been up and down in recent days with a trouble-free 2-0 win over FC Spaeri Tiflis in UEFA Conference League qualification - but their first upset of the new season came in the cup, with a surprise 2-3 defeat at regional league side ASK Voitsberg. Austria will surely not allow themselves to be knocked out of their stride by that after an encouraging past season.

FC Blau-Weiß Linz

Blau-Weiß Linz also have a new man in the dugout. Mitja Mörec took charge in summer and has immediately made changes to the squad. Christopher Cvetko was signed from relegated Austria Klagenfurt, with Nico Maier (FC Wil) and Liefering's Valentin Oelz snapped up for no fee. They have also added Viktor Baier (Viktoria Pilsen) and Muharem Huskovic (Austria Wien) on loan. Leaving the club have been Conor Nos (MSV Duisburg), Alexander Schmidt (Admira Wacker), Lukas Ibertsberger (Austria Lustenau), Danilo Mitrovic (FK Radnicki) and Julian Gölles (TSV Hartberg).

Results over the summer have been mixed with defeats against Slavia Prague (0-1) and Ipswich (1-4) along with a decent 3-1 win against Fortuna Dusseldorf. They took a 3-0 success in the cup against Treibach and appear ready to compete for a spot in the championship group again.

TSV Hartberg

Hartberg have also seen movement in their squad over the summer. New are Julian Gölles from FC Blau-Weiß Linz along with two talents from Munich in Maximilian Hennig and Tom Hülsmann. Youba Diarra, once one of ours, has also been signed from Cadiz to provide stability in midfield. Dominic Vincze has also joined on loan from Rapid. One regular to leave has been Donis Avdijaj, who is going on a free transfer to WAC. Manuel Pfeifer, Raphael Sallinger and Mateo Karamtic have also all left the club.

Hartberg took a narrow win over Liberec in pre-season (1-0) but had no chance against Red Star Belgrade (losing 1-4). A 5-2 win against Lafnitz in the cup was a good start to the season, and now Hartberg want to press on in the league and have their sights set on the championship group.

SCR Altach

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Having secured safety right at the end of the season, Altach will be aiming for a more stable campaign this time around. Fabio Ingolitsch's side have made a statement by bringing back their retro club crest. In Yann Massombo (Clermont), Patrick Greil (SV Sandhausen) and Daniel Antosch (Nea Salamis), three new out-of-contract players have also joined. On the departures side are Sofian Bahloul, Lukas Fadinger and Ammar Helas, who has left for Hartberg.

Altach have enjoyed good pre-seasons against Swiss sides, beating Vaduz (4-2) and Luzern (3-1) while holding FC Basel to a 1-1 draw. The first hurdle in the cup was overcome with a big 4-1 win at SC Hirschwang. The hope is they can climb away from relegation danger this time.

WSG Tirol

WSG are aiming for safety again in their seventh consecutive season of Bundesliga football. Their squad planning has shown ambition with a promising striker from Crystal Palace U21 signed in Ademola Ola-Adebomi. Also joining are Marco Boras (Slaven Belupo), Thomas Sabitzer (WAC) and Benjamin Böckle on loan from Rapid. Among those leaving are Stefan Skrbo, Cem Üstündag and Bror Blume (all abroad) and Jonas David (end of contract).

Their friendly matches have been mixed - with a 2-1 win against Bayern München II followed by defeats against Al-Ahli SFC (1-2) and Al-Ahli Dubai (0-1). They raced to a 4-0 win against Traiskirchen in the cup. The aim is now to hold their own in the league.

Grazer AK

GAK have also swooped on relegated Austria Klagenfurt to take Tobias Koch to Graz. Tim Paumgartner is also heading to them to aim for his Bundesliga breakthrough after time in the Red Bull Academy and FC Liefering. Alexander Hofleitner from Kapfenberg and Ludwig Vraa from Bröndby are also new. Leaving were Kevin-Prince Milla (FK Dukla Prague), Milos Jovicic (out of contract) and Laszlo Kleinheisler, whose contract is over after joining in the winter.

A draw against CFR Cluj and loss against Vojvodina were followed by a clear win against MSK Zilina in pre-season. A 0-1 loss in Dornbirn saw them start the season on a downer, with a narrow defeat also in a friendly against FAC. GAK want to start the league season better - but they will have to travel to our Red Bull Arena on Saturday 9 August for our first home match of the campaign.

BL season opener

SV Ried

SV Ried are back in the big time – and have a clear mission, stocking up on players after gaining promotion. They have signed a full-back from WAC in Jonathan Scherzer, while Christopher Wernitznig brings Bundesliga experience after swapping the relegated side for the promoted one. Yusuf Maart from the Kaizer Chiefs and Ekin Azkune, on loan from Athletic Bilbao, should add to their goal threat.

On the other side of the equation are the departures of Fabian Wohlmuth and Wilfried Eza, while the contracts of David Bamberger and Nemanja Celic have ended. The Vikings suffered a 0-5 defeat to 1860 Munich in pre-season before better performances against Diosgyör (1-1), our FC Liefering (4-2) and Energie Cottbus (2-1). A 5-0 win over Parndorf in the ÖFB Cup creates hope that they can compete in the Bundesliga. Our Red Bulls hope to burst their bubble early on when we start our campaign in Ried this Saturday at 19:30.

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The big Bundesliga 25/26 opposition analysis